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[image: Flower] I don’t typically endorse candidates, but as 2015 draws to a close, I feel I must make an exception. I think it’s a safe bet that for most of us, the year-that-was was not the year we wanted it to...more »

Today I got another shameless fundraising email from a Senate Democrat doing Wall Street's bidding-- Barbara Boxer, disgracing herself as she hobbles out the door by referring to reactionary "ex"-Republican, Patrick Murphy, as a "bold progressive" and asking people who trust her to contribute to his right-wing campaign. Maybe "bold-faced liar" would have been more precise. Until Murphy realized he would have to run against Grayson in a primary-- a *Democratic* primary-- he regularly voted with the GOP on almost every crucial roll call. He had the 4th worst voting record among Demo...more »

*-By Noah* When Republicans find a group of people they consider “different” or can paint as “different”, they pounce. Skin tone, nationality, religion, gender, and gender preference are all are fair game in Republican World. Anything they can use to rile up the emotions and unfounded fears of their base is, in their view, fair game. They take it and put it into their schoolyard bully approach to “debate”. It’s the art of meanness and it gets them where they want to go. It’s also a useful tool of distraction form far more important issues. It can get naïve voters to vote against...more »

The website CBS Money Watch has up an interesting, but in my view ultimately wrong piece by Alain Sherter which suggests the U.S. economy is more likely than not to “slip into recession in 2016.” The article first references the views of analysts from Citi Bank: *“In a December report, Citi Research analysts put the probability of the U.S. entering a new recession -- two consecutive quarters of shrinking economic growth -- at 65 percent. That prediction is partly rooted in history.”* Citi’s argument is based on the years that have passed since our last recession. In other words,...more »

[image: Fairytale of New York, lost and broken] It was Christmas Eve babe In the drunk tank An old man said to me, "Won’t see another one." And then he sang a song The Rare Old Mountain Dew I turned my face away And dreamed about you. (From...more »

*Zero Hedge*: *This Is How You Vaporize An ISIS Training Camp* From the time Russia began airstrikes in Syria on September 30, the Ministry of Defense has been a serial producer of videos depicting Moscow’s air campaign against anti-Assad elements. Whether or not the footage shows what The Kremlin says it does is probably debatable. That is, there’s no way for the public to distinguish between an ISIS training camp and an FSA position in the often grainy clips the MoD posts on YouTube, but one thing is for sure: Russia is conducting a lot of airstrikes in the skies above Syria....more »

[image: Holiday Spotify Playlists] Were you wondering if you could listen to the same songs the leader of the free world is grooving to this holiday season? Well, you're in luck! The White House released lists of the top holiday tunes for the Obamas... Continue reading *“The Obamas and the Bidens Release Their Holiday Spotify Playlists”* at *abcnews.go.com*.

Reports have emerged that five states have removed Donald Trump’s name from the Republican primary ballot ahead of the 2016 vote. Election judges in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, North Carolina, and Florida allegedly informed the Republican front-runner that they had removed his name from the ballot due to his candidacy being deemed “invalid”. Christiantimesnewspaper.com reports: If not resolved by February 1st, Trump’s campaign for the Republican nomination is effectively over. In November, a Republican election official in New Hampshire foreshadowed this move. From WMUR: A former c...more »

Russian fighter jets have completely destroyed a convoy of ISIS oil trucks in Syria as part of Putin’s plans to thwart the terrorist organisation. Footage released by the Russian Defence Ministry show a column of fuel tankers being destroyed by the Russian planes in Aleppo. Presstv.com reports: Meanwhile, the ministry also announced that the Russian air force has targeted 1,093 Takfiri terrorist positions with 302 sorties in various locations in Syria since Friday. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov noted that during the attacks, a terrorist training ...more »

The Russian Defence Ministry have reported that ISIS militants have arrived in Afghanistan, substantially increasing the chance of terrorist attacks in the region. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said the situation in Afghanistan was concerning: “All prerequisites are in place for us to confidently state that ISIL cells have emerged there. In addition to everything that went on before, we now have additional risks. We as Collective Security Treaty Organization allies“. Farsnews.com reports: Afghanistan is in a political and social turmoil, as the Taliban and other extremist ...more »

The United Nations Security Council endorses a UN-brokered deal supporting the formation of a unity government in Libya last week. [Photo: Xinhua] *Reuters*: *U.N. council backs Libya peace deal, no Western air strikes sought* The U.N. Security Council on Wednesday endorsed a U.N.-brokered agreement among Libya's warring factions to form a national unity government, a deal Western powers hope will bring stability and help to combat a growing Islamic State presence. Libya's U.N. ambassador, Ibrahim Dabbashi, said Libyan authorities have no plans to request Western air strikes again...more »

On the trail from where Lakota Chief Sitting Bull was killed, to Wounded Knee. http://300-miles.org/OT/index.html Thank you to Ken Marchionno and the Future Generations Riders for sharing your photos and your journey with Censored News.

A bright light was seen flying across the sky over California and Nevada on Tuesday evening, startling residents who initially thought it was some kind of meteor shower. The 10-minute fireball was actually debris from a Russian rocket, which travelled through the sky at 6.00 pm PST. Witnesses took to social media describing what they thought was a comet with a long tail, with some saying they believed the Russian rocket to be a UFO. Sightings were reported from Indio, Death Valley, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Corona, Irvine and Las Vegas before it fizzled out over Arizona. Sputniknews....more »

Simon & Garfunkel, "The Sound of Silence" (Original Version from 1964) "This is the original version from the album "Wednesday Morning, 3 AM" in 1964. Just Simon's guitar and the vocals. After "Wednesday Morning, 3 AM" flopped, they split up. The famous version was released in 1966 when, without either of their knowledge, electric guitars and drums were added. That version of 'The Sound of Silence' became very popular, reaching #1 on the charts in America on New Years Day, 1966. Because of this, Simon and Garfunkel teamed up again and created three more studio albums, one of which w...more »

SOURCE DAILY MAIL: Families splashing out on credit cards drives household debt back to pre-crash high of £40BILLION The shock figures, buried in the latest forecasts by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), reveal that families are set to spend £40 billion more than they earn this year. The OBR, which produces independent forecasts for the Treasury, suggests this figure will soar to

*RT:* *Apocalyptic scenes of Damascus suburb obliterated by violent clashes (RT EXCLUSIVE DRONE FOOTAGE)* The Jobar neighborhood of Damascus is the epicenter of some of the fiercest fighting in Syria with Islamist rebels refusing to give up their only stronghold. Once densely populated, the area has now been completely obliterated, RT’s Murad Gazdiev reports. Most of the pre-conflict population has fled the rebel-held neighborhood of Jobar in the eastern suburb of Ghouta in Damascus, while fighting between the Syrian army and rebel groups has devastated the suburb over the past y...more »

Hillary Clinton with Eli Broad at the pre-ball dinner hosted by Eli Broad at the Inauguration Ball of Barack Obama on January 20, 2009. by Ken Derstine December 23, 2015 Hillary Clinton has caused a major scramble by her supporters after she spoke at a small high school outside Des Moines, Iowa. In her remarks she told the students at Keota High School on Tuesday, December 22, This school district and these schools throughout Iowa are doing a better than average job. Now I wouldn't keep any school open that wasn't doing a better than average job. If a school is not doing a good job...more »

*Part of a continuing series looking at the pagan origins of the Christmas Myths,* one day at a time. Today, the story and pagan origins of King Herod’s weapons-grade infanticide …* [image: File:0 Le Massacre des Innocents d'après P.P. Rubens - Musées royaux des beaux-arts de Belgique (2).JPG]*Massacre of the Innocents*, Peter Paul Rubens The story is familiar enough as a postscript to the whole Nativity. The life of the infant just born and celebrated in a manger is immediately under threat by the evil king, put in danger by the ruler’s fear that the new baby (who he’s been told i...more »

ISIS sets sites on Washington in new video. (photo credit:ISLAMIC SOCIAL MEDIA) *Farhad Rezaei, Jerusalem Post:* *The Islamic State nuclear doomsday* The emergence of jihadists known to be searching for nuclear and radiological (NR) material has lent a tone of urgency to the debate about ways to prevent nuclear terrorism. At the same time, the supply side of the equation has grown from inchoate attempts at smuggling to a more organized market in NR material. This combination of factors has arguably increased the probability of spectacular attack in the not so distant future. The r...more »

*"And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed – if all records told the same tale – then the lie passed into history and became truth**: **All that was needed was an unending series of victories over your own memory"* *And this is where Sy Hersh and his latest article* *" Military to Military-Seymour US intelligence sharing in the Syrian war" **begin to impose yet another lie onto history to enforce the new truth over your own memory * I've been reading it over and over for the past three days. The piece is *riddled with contradictions *and* rife with unsubstanti...more »

Donald Trump has named Vladimir Putin as his favourite world leader and revealed he sometimes thinks about him while taking a bath. But the man leading the race to become the Republican presidential nominee insisted there is nothing homoerotic about his feelings for Putin and that they could comfortably share a hotel bed if there was some kind of booking mix up. “I’d also be comfortable sharing a bed with him if we both wanted to save tax payers money,” Trump said. “Like Russia, America is a country for rugged straight guys who admire each other’s manliness. We have so much in commo...more »

As Sunni Muslims around the world celebrate Prophet Mohammad’s birthday on December 24th, the Sawab Centre, a joint initiative by the UAE and the United States to fight Daesh’s extremist ideology online, has launched a campaign on its Twitter and Instagram pages, refuting Daesh’s claims of following the teachings of the Prophet. Islam offers surrender to the will of Allah and greets all with peace. It does not need to follow a path of violence to achieve results, but submission and love to marvel at god’s creation. If the love and marvel are not there then the world is seen as a bat...more »

What excitement! It's on A 7 of today's Moncton Times and Transcript. New Brunswick's Forest Sector Supports Science-Based Study of Glyphosate Herbicide. It's in full colour, and it takes up a whole page. And Mr. Irving puts it straight to the government. He wants a full government study of the use of glysophate, the stuff he's been using to spray his (our?) forests and us. And he wants it fast - May 1, 1916 deadline for a report to the public. The public? That's us. JDIrvingLtd. is leading the way for us. That means it loves us. And, you know, if you can't trust a New Brunswick gove...more »

The UN Security Council unanimously voted for an agreement that would create a unity government between Libya's rival factions. (AFP/File) *Reuters:* *U.N. council backs Libya peace deal, no Western air strikes sought* The U.N. Security Council on Wednesday endorsed a U.N.-brokered agreement among Libya's warring factions to form a national unity government, a deal Western powers hope will bring stability and help to combat a growing Islamic State presence. Libya's U.N. ambassador, Ibrahim Dabbashi, said Libyan authorities have no plans to request Western air strikes against Islam...more »

In an interview with Democracy Now’s Amy Goodman, Seymour Hersh says that US military chiefs had undermined president Obama on Syria. The Pulitzer price winning journalist said that the Joint Chiefs of Staff were indirectly supporting Bashar al-Assad in an effort to help him defeat their common enemy, and the jihadist groups operating in Syria. Democracy Now reports: Hersh reports the Joint Chiefs sent intelligence via Russia, Germany and Israel on the understanding it would be transmitted to help Assad push back Jabhat al-Nusra and the Islamic State. Hersh also claims the military ...more »

[image: Donald Trump] DALLAS (AP) -- Melissa Yassini and her 8-year-old daughter, Sofia, spend some time every evening reading messages from the thousands of people who have told Sofia not to be afraid just because she’s Muslim. Sofia’s story of terror that she...more »

[image: Garbage on the Street - 900] African and Middle-Eastern migrants in an Italian town are protesting insufficient Wi-Fi at their settlement by dumping their garbage into the streets. According to The Local, which cites the Italian-language La Repubblica, a group of two dozen Sub-Saharan African migrants...more »

[image: poor nations - 400] Why are the wealthiest nations so much richer than the poorest nations? Harvard's Ricardo Hausmann explains what's behind global inequality and poverty: So there are these enormous differences in productivity that make the productive places rich and the unproductive places poor.... Continue reading *“Poor Nations are Poor Because of the Lack of Capitalism, Not Because of It”* at *aei.org*.

A Kurdish activist says that NATO ally Turkey, is conducting an undeclared war on its Kurdish population that could result in a civil war and turn Turkey into a new Syria. Human Rights Watch has said that 100 Kurdish women and children have been killed in south-eastern Turkey in the last six months during government special operations and armed clashes. Sputnik News reports: Tensions between Turkish authorities and Kurdish opposition escalated in July after the latter broke a ceasefire agreement and accused Ankara of supporting Daesh (Islamic State). After, HRW called on the Turkish...more »

The Ministry of Defense in Russia have issued a report saying that Germany’s top intelligence officials have decided to distance themselves from American “policies, aims and goals” in regard to the fight against ISIS in the Middle East, accusing President Obama of being “insane”. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has ordered the German Intelligence Service (BND) to liaise directly with Syria’s Military Intelligence Directorate (MID) by setting up an office with them in Syria. The BND have accused Obama’s administration of acting recklessly following the explosive report by Seymour Her...more »

A class action lawsuit has been filed in Texas to prevent the State from reinstituting debtors’ prisons for people who are to poor to pay traffic fines and petty misdemeanors. This latest lawsuit is one of many lawsuits that have been filed all across America recently, as more and more judges are jailing citizens for failing to pay their fines. Filmingcops.com reports: Debtors’ prisons “create a racially skewed, two-tiered system of justice in which the poor receive harsher, longer punishments for committing the same crimes as the rich, simply because they are poor,” according to t...more »

By Paul Homewood h/t AC Osborn http://junkscience.com/2015/12/exclusive-ocean-acidification-not-a-current-problem-top-noaa-scientist-insists-in-foia-ed-e-mails/ Steve Milloy at Junk Science has obtained some emails from NOAA by FOI, which show the agency has been complicit in arranging an op-ed in the New York Times about ocean acidification, which even one of its experts says is misleading: Exclusive: Ocean acidification […]

A U.S. fighter jet launches from the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson in the Arabian Gulf in this file photo. (REUTERS) *Bryan Schatz, Mother Jones*: *The Pentagon Says It Has Killed 20,000 ISIS Fighters—and Just 6 Civilians* *But observers say US-led bombing has killed hundreds of noncombatants.* Asked about his critics' calls for the United States to use more force in its air war against ISIS, President Barack Obama rejected the idea of expanded airstrikes in an interview with NPR on Monday. "If the suggestion is is that we kill tens or hundreds of thousands of innocent Syrians ...more »

Quoting Mao is in thanks to John McDonnell's invocation at the dispatch box. With Stalinist revivalism in the air, I'm going to indulge another practice associated with China's unlamented Red Guard movement: the self-criticism. Confession time. I've found getting my bearing in the new politics extremely difficult. That's inevitable I suppose as previous self-evident truths were upended in little over a couple of months. The amateur dramatics we've seen from commentators and MPs is entirely understandable - though not excusable. The universe they knew has evaporated and the party a...more »

*Daily Mail*: *Russia has killed at least 200 civilians with its cluster munitions and bombs in Syria, claims Amnesty International * * Amnesty attacks Russia's 'shameful failure' to acknowledge civilian killings * Surge in reports of cluster bombs dropped since Moscow joined war * They can leave unexploded bomblets which maim and kill at a later time * Group's director says attacks on civilians 'may amount to war crimes' Russia has been accused of killing at least 200 civilians with cluster munitions and unguided bombs during its bombing campaign in Syria. Human rights watchdog ...more »

[image: LAKEWOOD, CO - OCTOBER 29: Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson speaks during a news conference before a campaign event at Colorado Christian University on October 29, 2015 in Lakewood, Colorado. Ben Carson was back on the campaign trail a day after the third republican debate held at the University of Colorado Boulder.] UPPERCO, Md. (AP) -- Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson said Wednesday he is moving toward a major shake-up of his struggling campaign, with just six weeks to go until early voting begins to select party nominees. In an interview with...more »

The French government have announced controversial proposals to reform the French Constitution to enshrine new harsh anti-terror laws that were ‘temporarily’ imposed in France following the Paris attacks. The change in Constitution will mean a permanent move away from the freedoms and liberties French citizens have enjoyed in the past, with new chilling police powers such as house arrests and the right to raid houses without permission from a judge set to become the norm. Yahoo News reports: In the wake of the Paris attacks that left 130 dead, President Francois Hollande called for...more »

Russia have said that Turkey have made an “official acknowledgement” that the operation to down the Su-24 jet was “planned”. Ministry of Defence spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov told reporters on Wednesday, “When on November 24 the Turkish fighter jet treacherously fired a rocket at our Su-24, the Turkish General Staff was perfectly aware about when and where our two bombers would be carrying out their mission”. Rt.com reports: The statement recently made by Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus in which he provides information on Russian sorties in Syria, “can be re...more »

Documents obtained via a freedom of information request reveal that a large number of GMO corporations are threatened by the work of a 14-year-old girl who uses social media to speak out against the dangers of GMO’s. In an embarrassing revelation internal emails reveal that the GMO lobby plotted to counter Rachel Parents efforts to spread awareness on the dangers of GMO foods, admitting that they are “quite plainly threatened” by her efforts. Pressfortruth.ca reports: Parent was even lucky enough to have a debate with Kevin O’Leary which aired on national television, and she also g...more »

A recent investigation by journalist Seymour Hersh has provided evidence that the Pentagon’s Joint Chiefs of Staff have provided intelligence on ISIS to Syrian President Bashar Assad, whilst the CIA simultaneously arm and train ISIS militants in the Middle East. Hersh says that this is in direct contrast with Obama’s agenda of regime change, highlighting a huge disconnect between the White House and the U.S. military. Thefreethoughtproject.com reports: The awkward situation stems from the Obama administration’s insistence that there are “moderate rebel” groups to arm that are capab...more »

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has changed its rules about the use of body scanners in U.S. airports, saying that officers are now allowed to forcibly screen passengers through Advanced Imaging Technologies (AIT), even if they chose to “opt out”. The new rules say: “TSA is updating the AIT PIA to reflect a change to the operating protocol regarding the ability of individuals to opt opt-out of AIT screening in favor of physical screening.” “While passengers may generally decline AIT screening in favor of physical screening, TSA may direct mandatory AIT screening for some p...more »

[image: Obama3 - 400] President Obama lamented the persecution of Christians worldwide, specifically by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, in a statement the day before Christmas Eve. “In some areas of the Middle East where church bells have rung for centuries on... Continue reading *“Obama Offers Prayers for Christians Persecuted by ISIS”* at *thehill.com*.

Earlier today, we ended a post with a quote from Republican publicist David Frum, who, like Ted Cruz, is Canadian and involved with U.S. politics: "Something has changed in American politics since the Great Recession. The old slogans ring hollow. The insurgent candidates are less absurd, the orthodox candidates more vulnerable. The GOP donor elite planned a dynastic restoration in 2016. Instead, it triggered an internal class war." It's from an interesting essay he wrote from *The Atlantic* and it got me thinking about the desperation of the Republican establishment-- their elites...more »

“Dust lanes seem to swirl around the core of Messier 96 in this colorful, detailed portrait of the center of a beautiful island universe. Of course M96 is a spiral galaxy, and counting the faint arms extending beyond the brighter central region, it spans 100 thousand light-years or so, making it about the size of our own Milky Way. M96, also known as NGC 3368, is known to be about 35 million light-years distant and a dominant member of the Leo I galaxy group. *Click image for larger size.* The featured image was taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. The reason for M96's asymmetry is u...more »

Doug Peacock, the grizzly bear expert, lives near the Yellowstone River in Montana. In 1968, the largest collection of Clovis artifacts was found not far from his home, on the Anzick ranch. The Clovis culture of Native Americans existed for about 300 years, from 13,100 to 12,800 to years ago — during the era of megafauna extinctions. Of the 35 genera of large mammals that went extinct in America, half of them vanished in a 500-year period, from 13,200 to 12,700 years ago. The Clovis culture developed a new and improved design for the flaked stone points used as spearheads. The ...more »

There have been numerous reports in recent weeks about possible terrorism over the Christmas and New Year holidays. One of the most recent reports has been deemed a “credible threat” by the NYPD against a terrorist attack on New York City. NYPD Commissioner Williams Bratton later discussed the terror threat during an emergency meeting, warning that citizens should remain vigilant: All New York City police officers received a bulletin Tuesday afternoon outlining the department’s tactical plan and warning officers to stay vigilant, according to sources. That internal memo mentioned s...more »

[image: Christmas carols, Christmas carolers, Christmas caroling, singers, singing, winter] Police lifted a ban on Christmas caroling after ordering a group of pro-life activists to stop singing "Silent Night" and other carols on a sidewalk outside an abortion clinic. The carolers planned to head back to the clinic before Christmas Eve, relieved they each...more »

Source: Wikimedia *Paul Blake, BBC*: *Ramadi assault: How a small change in tactics helped Iraqi forces* A switch in tactics has provided the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) with some victories in their battle against the so-called Islamic State (IS), notably in Ramadi, says the US military. The change came in the late summer. Lieutenant General Sean MacFarland took over the US-led coalition against IS known as Operation Inherent Resolve in September. Upon assuming his new post, the general began studying what worked and what had not worked in the fight against IS up to that point. ...more »

*Jack Moore, Newsweek*: *Only Foreign Fighters Remain In ISIS' Last Stand For Ramadi* Only foreign fighters from the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) remain in the city of Ramadi after local Sunnis, who helped the group capture the city in May, fled in the face of a large-scale Iraqi military offensive, the governor of Anbar’s office told Newsweek late Tuesday. The local Sunni population who aided ISIS’s capture of Ramadi in May, acting as double agents and sleeper cells, have left the city and the remaining few hundred ISIS militants leading the resistance are from the group’...more »

[image: Ted Cruz3 - 400] After that audio of Cruz questioning Trump's judgment at a private fundraiser leaked a few weeks ago, Mike Allen of Politico promised more was coming. Promise kept. Here's how he answered when someone stood up at a fundraiser in Manhattan... Continue reading *“Ted Cruz Tells New York Donors Gay Marriage Not a Top Three Priority, But …”* at *hotair.com*.

[image: St Serra - 400] A coalition of students at the University of San Diego have demanded that administrators denounce Saint Junipero Serra as a mass murderer with a "colonialist legacy." They also want the Catholic saint's name stripped from a campus building at the private Catholic university. The... Continue reading *“Students Demand Catholic University Denounce Saint Junípero Serra as Mass Murderer”* at *thecollegefix.com*.

*CNN*: *Iraqi forces closing in on ISIS in Ramadi, military official says* Iraq's military is just a half-mile away from the ISIS-held government compound in Ramadi in Iraq's battle to retake the city from the terrorist group, the head of Iraq's joint forces said on state television. Talib Shighati said soldiers are "cleansing" Ramadi's liberated neighborhoods from ISIS terrorists, a task made more difficult by the many IEDs planted "almost everywhere." With the help of U.S.-led coalition airstrikes, Iraqi forces are in the second day of a coordinated attack on Ramadi, a city abou...more »

*WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2015Candidate Trump's "budget plan:"* Over at TPM, Josh Marshall continues his etymological pursuit of Candidate Trump's new number-one favorite word. Not that there's anything wrong with it! Meanwhile, in the Washington Post, we get to peruse the verifiable shape of The Crazy. At long last, the Tax Policy Center has released its analysis of Candidate Trump's lunatic "budget plan." Kelsey Snell's news report is buried deep inside this morning's paper. The numbers are crazily large: SNELL (12/23/15): Donald Trump says he wants to cut taxes for every inc...more »

*Michael O'Hanlon. Politico:* *Why Americans are still dying in Afghanistan* The deaths of six more GIs show that the president’s strategy still isn’t right. Here’s what he must do now. Barack Obama is almost certain to end up as the only two-term president in American history to have waged a single war — in Afghanistan — through his entire time in office. And no end is even in sight: Recent days have brought yet more troubling news. The Taliban killed 50 civilians near Kandahar Air Base on December 9, then struck again in Kabul, causing Spanish and Afghan losses. Most recently, t...more »

A British soldier looks out from an armored vehicle at the site of a Taliban attack on a guesthouse attached to the Spanish embassy in Kabul on Dec. 12, 2015. Photo: Reuters *Wall Street Journal*: *Intelligence Gap Fuels Extremist Rise in Afghanistan* *Extensive spy network was anchored by bases and outposts operated by the U.S. and its NATO allies* KABUL—Fourteen years after the U.S. and its allies routed most al Qaeda militants from Afghanistan, the country is again becoming a haven for extremist groups, the result, in part, of inadequate surveillance of its far-flung territor...more »

It appears that recent calls by the Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump, to ban the entry of all Muslims to the U.S. is being implemented at U.K. airports. A growing number of Muslim families have recently been denied entry to the U.S. without just cause. A British Muslim family of 11, from north east London, were stopped on their way to a planned family trip to Disneyland, California. American Homeland Security stopped 9 children and two adults and revoked their visas at the departure gate of Gatwick airport. The Mahmood family and others believe that the policy of barr...more »

[image: San Bernardino shooter] House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) is releasing the K-1 “fiancee” visa file for San Bernardino, Calif., shooter Tashfeen Malik to bolster his argument that immigration officials missed crucial vetting steps. Goodlatte said on Tuesday that in order to... Continue reading *“GOP: Crucial Steps Missed in Vetting of San Bernardino Shooter for US Visa”* at *thehill.com*.

[image: We the People, U.S. Constitution, US Constitution, Quill Pen, USA] No one will ever mistake Donald Trump for a student of James Madison. The real-estate mogul has demonstrated about as much familiarity with the U.S. Constitution as with the Bible, which is to say, none. Trump has captivated a share...more »

[image: Rand Paul] Rand Paul said on Wednesday that he will refuse to participate in a "second-tier" debate if he is relegated to the undercard stage by the Fox Business Network. Politico reported on Tuesday that the network's criteria to make the main... Continue reading *“Rand Paul Says He Won’t Participate in Undercard Debate”* at *buzzfeed.com*.

*VOA*: *Afghan Reinforcements Sent to Helmand Province* The Afghan government has sent reinforcements to the besieged southern district of Helmand province, after Taliban militants captured large parts of the area in recent days. Fighting continues as army and police arrive to help security forces after days of clashes. The Taliban began their advance on the Sangin district Sunday, after storming government buildings and capturing the administrative center. *WNU Editor*: Even with Afghan/British/U.S. reinforcements, the Taliban advance continues .... *Afghanistan Taliban 'push fu...more »

With Mt. Halla in the background, a naval band performs during a ceremony at the new naval base on the southern resort island of Jeju on Dec. 22 to announce the arrival of two South Korean Aegis destroyers from the southwestern coastal base of Busan. The relocation is part of the Jeju navy base's official launch scheduled for next month. While recently in Gangjeong village on Jeju Island (with the Veterans For Peace delegation) we heard that the South Korean government was saying the new Navy base was 97% complete. Local activists, who have become experts on the status of construc...more »

*Reuters*: *Iraqi troops expected to drive ISIS from Ramadi in days: state TV* Iraq's army chief was quoted on Wednesday as saying he needed only days to drive Islamic State from Ramadi, the city whose fall in May exposed the weakness of the Baghdad government and dampened hopes of restoring control in the north and west. Iraqi troops began advancing on Tuesday in an offensive complicated by rivalries and suspicions harbored by local Sunni tribes and by Shi'ite militia backed by Iran. U.S. officials, concerned also by militant operations over the border in Syria, have expressed f...more »

R. v. Budhoo, 2015 ONCA 912: [79] In *R. v. Gunning*, 2005 SCC 27, [2005] 1 S.C.R. 627, the Supreme Court of Canada held that a trial judge should not assess the evidence or provide a direction to a jury that to an essential element of an offence had been proven beyond a reasonable doubt (at para. 31): Hence, it is never the function of the judge in a jury trial to assess the evidence and make a determination that the Crown has proven one or more of the essential elements of the offence and to direct the jury accordingly. It does not matter how obvious the judge may believe ...more »

[image: Chipotle] Chris Collins is a 32-year-old Web developer and photographer who lives in Oregon, just outside Portland. He and his wife are conscientious about their food: They eat organic, local produce and ethically raised animals. Collins liked to have a meal... Continue reading *“Inside Chipotle’s Contamination Crisis”* at *bloomberg.com*.

[image: Herod the Great - 400] Was Herod the Great really innocent of this crime, or did this criminal act actually happen? Continue reading *“Answering the Skeptics About King Herod’s Massacre in Bethlehem”* at *biblearchaeology.org*.

[image: Angel Tree - 400] Remember for a moment what Christmas morning was like as a child (or consider what kind of Christmas morning you're creating for your own children). Many of us are fortunate to have warm memories -- such as a fire crackling,... Continue reading *“For Prisoners’ Children, Angel Tree is Their Santa”* at *thefederalist.com*.

By Paul Homewood https://rclutz.wordpress.com/2015/12/23/arctic-sea-ice-self-oscillating-system/ The Earth has long proved just how stable its climate is. Ron Clutz has picked up on an interesting paper by the Russian V. F. Zacharov on how the Arctic climate regulates itself. Scientists have studied the Arctic for a long time at the prestigious AARI: Arctic and […]

*“Mortal Soul”* by Chet Raymo “Once, many years ago, I made my way to the hillside farm in New York's Catskill Mountains where John Burroughs was born and where he was buried in 1921 at age 84. He was one of the two John's who established the genre of nature writing in America: John Muir was "John o' Mountains", and John Burroughs was "John o' Birds." It was a hardscrabble farm. Burrough's grave had to be blasted out of the Devonian sandstone with dynamite. Not much farming thereabouts today; when I visited there were few signs of human activity in the broad vista over the valley...more »

Brazil urges couples to stop having babies after the spread of a mosquito-borne virus is believed to be the cause of 2,400 babies being born with brain damage and deformities. Brazilian health officials believe it is prudent to be safe than sorry, and have recommended that couples should put away their pregnancy plans, while authorities investigate the outbreak of a mosquito-borne virus, and the rise in stunted brain development in babies. The Washington Post reports: The pathogen, known as Zika and first discovered in forest monkeys in Africa over 70 years ago, is the new West Nile...more »

I'm still reading Maury Klein's *A Call To Arms*. The book is full of tons of vignettes of the USA during World War Two. One I'd long thought of posting about is his account of how white Californians bought the farms from their fellow citizens of Japanese origin for a fraction of their true value, because those Japanese-Americans were about to be interred and had to sell their assets quickly. Before they were shipped-out to the barbed-wire camps in the desert, the Japanese were being held in squalid conditions at such places as "race-tracks, fairgrounds and parking lots with little ...more »

Firefighters have been battling to save Boleskine House, a historic property near Loch Ness. The fire service said that a large part of the Highland mansion has already been destroyed and crews are concentrating their efforts on the west wing of the building. Boleskine House, near Foyers,was the home of occultist Aleister Crowley, the self-proclaimed “wickedest man in the world”, between 1899 and 1933 It was also owned by Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page who bought the property in the 1970s because of the Crowley connection, before later selling it. The BBC reports: The Scottish Fi...more »

[image: fake pregnancy] A woman with a “fake pregnancy” belly has been detained in France on suspicion of planning to carry out a suicide bombing. The woman, who police have described as being 23 years old and a French convert to Islam, was... Continue reading *“Police Detain Woman with ‘Fake Pregnancy’ Belly on Suspicion of Plotting Suicide Bombing”* at *breitbart.com*.

By Paul Homewood http://polarbearscience.com/2015/12/23/survey-results-svalbard-polar-bear-numbers-increased-30-over-last-11-years/ If polar bear populations were to suffer anywhere because of receding sea ice, it would be in the Barents Sea. However, a population survey by the Norwegian Polar Institute tells a different story, as Dr Susan Crockford relates: Results of this fall’s Barents Sea population survey have been […]

[image: Star Wars] Even though there is much to appreciate about Star Wars: The Force Awakens, I still didn't care for it when I saw it for a second time yesterday. My wife hadn't seen it yet and I wanted to reappraise it, as well... Continue reading *“Star Wars: The Force Awakens: Why Its Box Office Victory May be Bad News for Hollywood”* at *forbes.com*.

SEOUL — In one of the single biggest instances of misconduct we’ve ever come across, prosecutors in South Korea are seeking up to 18 months’ prison time for 75 professors who are among those charged with plagiarizing science and engineering textbooks wholesale. Prosecutors say that since the 1980s, 179 professors at 110 universities across the […] The post Korean prosecutors seek jail time for professors in massive plagiarism scheme appeared first on Retraction Watch.

According to Bashar-al-Assad the fight against terrorism “should be a stable, sustainable principle” based on a real social support, and the Western military activities in Syria are inefficient. During an interview with Die Presse, the Syrian president also said he was ready to talk to all parties to the conflict, but he doubted that any Western states would dare to negotiate with Syria without the approval of the United States. Sputnik news reports: “We have fought against terrorism from the very outset,” the politician stated. “You know, the fight against terrorism should be a sta...more »

*This is a continuation of the story about the U.S. Supreme Court and affirmative action.* Thomas Levenson, an MIT professor doing science writing, wrote an essay for the Atlantic: What Chief Justice Roberts Misunderstands About Physics The title is a provocative question. But what is the answer? What does Roberts misunderstand about physics? Levenson's answer is summarized by the subtitle: Science is not a separate realm that sits outside culture. But science *is* a realm that is separate from culture. More precisely, the idealized science has this characteristic. In the real w...more »

*seriously.* They make me itch. This is a lesson for what not to wear when you're short and dumpy. *At the last debate:* *Hillary at rally in Keota, Iowa, hugging a little girl who claims she's been bullied. Poor little snowflake.:*

[image: Pastor Farshid Fathi - 40000] Farshid Fathi was arrested on Boxing Day, 2010 during raids targeting Christian churches which saw 22 Christians arrested in Tehran and elsewhere. He spent more than 100 days in solitary confinement and was held for 14 months before his case... Continue reading *“Imprisoned Iranian Pastor Farshid Fathi Freed After Five Years”* at *christiantoday.com*.

[image: al-Shabaab - 400] NAIROBI (Reuters) -- Three Kenyan women and one Tanzanian have been charged with conspiring to recruit Kenyans for the Islamist group al Shabaab, a charge sheet issued by a courthouse in Mombasa showed on Wednesday. The Islamist group has sought to... Continue reading *“Kenya Charges Four Women with Recruiting for Islamist Militants”* at *news.yahoo.com*.

By Paul Homewood This comment from Dorian is worth a post of its own: I think the real killer here is that, as stated in the news clipping, that it was 46.9F in December 1841, equating to 8.3C. The MET Office, ludicrously does away with this temperature by focusing on a 7.1C back […]

Someone sent me a link to a new article from Seymour Hersh out of the United Kingdom, where supposedly Hersh has obtained information that the President of Syria, Bashar al-Assad, had been receiving US "intel" on "extremist" groups via, of all places, Russia, Israel, and of course Germany..... First, I do want to present the link to an article from RINF online at www.rinf.com, that discusses this latest "intel" in detail... Here is that link for everyone to read for themselves here: http://rinf.com/alt-news/latest-news/us-military-provided-assad-intel-extremists-via-russia-israel-ge...more »

*WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2015Part 3—As always, The Others are dumb:* Should the Trump voter, not Angela Merkel, perhaps have been selected by Time as "person of the year?" We begin to think so! By tradition, Time's selection isn't intended as an endorsement. And without any doubt, the Trump voter has turned American politics on its ear this year. This has led to many attempts to define the Trump voter, attempts whose methods often seem to derive from Salem village. Sweeping claims about these voters are becoming more and more common, including on "cable news," where we rarely see...more »

As Festivus approaches, let us now have the Airing of Grievances. They're twice and thrice-told tales you've perhaps read here over the years, about those gnarled gatekeepers called literary agents and how they seem to make it their mission in life to delay or outright ruin the careers of virtually every author who's misinformed and naïve enough to submit to them. You may have read earlier this month about how I'd submitted my new novel, *Gods of Our Fathers*, to one in NYC. This alone was like a labor of Hercules, as my hard drive crashed, then I had wifi connectivity is...more »

*-By Yotam Marom Walking the Tightrope* I’m in a warmly lit apartment on the Lower East Side. It’s a cool night in early October of 2011, the height of Occupy Wall Street. What a fucking whirlwind it’s been. Two months ago I had just moved into my parents’ basement, feeling deflated after the end of Bloombergville (a two-week street occupation outside city hall to try to stop the massive budget cuts of that same year), convinced this country wasn’t ready for movement. Now I’m in this living room with some of the most impressive people I’ve ever met, at the shaky helm of a moveme...more »

[image: Ted Cruz2 - 400] As Texas Sen. Ted Cruz continues to rise in the 2016 Republican primary polls -- he now leads longtime frontrunner Donald Trump by as many as 10 percentage points in Iowa and has climbed to second place nationally -- Democrats... Continue reading *“Democrats Want Ted Cruz to be the GOP’s Nominee. They Should be Careful What They Wish for.”* at *yahoo.com*.

[image: Rubio - 400] Everyone who is anyone in the 2016 presidential race is attacking Marco Rubio. The Floridian isn’t leading in any of the most-watched GOP primary polls -- national, Iowa, New Hampshire or South Carolina. Yet with first votes less than six weeks... Continue reading *“Marco Rubio’s Opponents Treating Him Like the Front-Runner”* at *washingtonexaminer.com*.

Hans Zimmer, “Time” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuAGGZNfUkU *"The Paradox Of Time"* "Time goes, you say? Ah no! Alas, Time stays, we go; Or else, were this not so, What need to chain the hours, For Youth were always ours? Time goes, you say?-ah no! Ours is the eyes' deceit Of men whose flying feet Lead through some landscape low; We pass, and think we see The earth's fixed surface flee:- Alas, Time stays,-we go! Once in the days of old, Your locks were curling gold, And mine had shamed the crow. Now, in the self-same stage, We've reached the silver age; Time goes...more »

Iraq has largely kept quiet about the number of casualties it has suffered while fighting the Islamic State. The average bombing of a patrol or shooting at a checkpoint that kills and wounds a few gets mentioned in the press, but losses from heavy fighting in places like Tikrit or Ramadi rarely do. At the end of 2015 Baghdad finally began to come clean about what the war has cost in terms of human lives. In the middle of December 2015 Iraq’s Defense Minister Khalid Obeidi gave detailsabout the war. He said that 2,649 soldiers had been killed and another 11,230 wounded since June ...more »

*"The Rate Hike Stock Market Crash Has Thrown Gasoline * *Onto An Already Raging Global Financial Inferno"* By Michael Snyder "If the stock market crash of last Thursday and Friday had all happened on one day, it would have been the 7th largest single day decline in U.S. history. On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 367 points after finishing down 253 points on Thursday. The overall decline of 620 points between the two days would have been the 7th largest single day stock market crash ever experienced in the United States if it had happened within just one trading d...more »

The U.S. government has finally declassified the 1950s Strategic Air Command target list, which shows that the US aimed to nuke civilian populations in enemy cities during Cold War. Complied in June 1956, the list was published by the National Security Archive on Tuesday. The newly released list of nuclear targets reveals that the US planned to inflict “systematic destruction” on communist enemy cities and planned to target the “population” of those regions. RT reports: Totaling almost 800 pages, the document details targets in over 1,200 cities, including Moscow, Beijing, and Wars...more »

Despite all the toil and strife, dare I hope that there is renewed cause for optimism as 2015 grinds to a close? His name is Bernie Sanders, and he is the first presidential candidate since FDR to burst upon the scene and welcome Wall Street's hatred with open arms. His op-ed demanding financial reform in today's *New York Times* should have the plutes wailing all the way to the slopes of Aspen, drowning out the polluting noise of their own private Lear Jets. In the spirit of the (hopefully) coming socialist revolution, here's an expanded and updated version of my Christmas post fro...more »

[image: LONDON - DECEMBER 19: Passengers queue to check-in at terminal 1 of Heathrow Airport on December 19, 2006 in London, England. Over the Christmas and New Year period London's main airports are gearing up for one of the busiest times of the year when almost three million passengers will pass through the airport. (Photo by Scott Barbour/Getty Images)] DALLAS (AP) -- Airlines are shifting the timing of thousands of flights, even adding dozens of redeyes, as they try to avoid delays while hauling millions of passengers from now through the Christmas weekend. Success or failure cou...more »

[image: Rand Paul - 400] GOP presidential candidate Rand Paul (R-KY) continued his annual “airing of grievances” tradition today, in which he tweets lighthearted complaints about everything from wasteful government spending to alternate-side parking to people who mock his turtlenecks. But this year Paul had... Continue reading *“Rand Paul Ribs GOP Rivals in Annual ‘Airing of Grievances’ on Twitter”* at *abcnews.go.com*.

*“In A Word, Meh”* by Karl Denninger "Here we go again... "Yale University students are protesting its mental health policies again after a business school student suffering from depression was expelled when he missed his required course load by a half credit. Grant Mao, a former student at Yale’s School of Management, fell short of the requirements to stay enrolled last spring after, among other things, his fiancé broke off their engagement and his mother suffered a heart attack. Mao says he was struggling with clinical depression, which made it impossible for him to complete assi...more »

Yes, it is now over 3 years since that fraud propaganda exercise at "Sandy Hook Elementary School" where the "official" story is that some 26 people died at the hand of an alleged lone autistic gunman, Adam Lanza... It is so remarkable that some 3 years after that false flag event where absolutely NOBODY died, the crisis actors hired to play the parts of the "families" of the "victims" are still raking in millions through the initial $666,000 each received as their payoff for playing their parts (poorly of course) and all of those generous "donations" made by gullible Americans..... ...more »

*in the past 35 hours.* We had a very heavy wet snowfall a few days ago. The snow was so heavy that many power lines were downed and we were without power for close to 30 hours. Which is nothing compared to what our Spokane neighbors endured after a major wind storm a few weeks ago. Many people, including friends of ours, were without power for up to eight *days.* *How prepared were we?* - Our wood stove kept us warm, heated water to make drip coffee, and even allowed me to scramble eggs for breakfast. - Our radio, which can be run on batteries as well as plugged in was ...more »

It has come up again, that is, the case of the Roswell nuns seeing something in the sky late on July 4, 1947, and recording it in their diaries. I have reported on this several times on this blog as I attempted to clarify the problem. This all came about in a footnote I had provided in *The Truth about the UFO Crash* at Roswell. Lance Moody has suggested that if you “googled” Roswell nuns you would see many references to them on the Internet and I suspect he believed them to be positive. Since I am responsible for the entry, and since I have arrived at the conclusion that if the dia...more »

[image: BLOOMINGTON, MN - DECEMBER 20: Thousands of protesters from the group 'Black Lives Matter' disrupt holiday shoppers on December 20, 2014 at Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota.] MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Protesters blocked roads and caused significant holiday traffic delays around the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport on Wednesday after staging a rally that briefly shut down part of the nation’s largest mall. Police said several people were arrested...more »

The authors of a paper about the benefits of an antioxidant found in blueberries known as pterostilbene have retracted it after their subsequent research suggested the antioxidant might actually be harmful. The paper presented evidence that the antioxidant might help rats after heart attack, in part by inhibiting cell death (apoptosis). But according to the retraction note, more […] The post Authors retract antioxidant paper after more work reverses their conclusion appeared first on Retraction Watch.

*Most important points:* *Erdogan is under the Gun.* *As has been mentioned here for well over a year now! **The Alt media is indeed singing from the same playbook as NATO-* *I've made note of that on any number of occasions- * *"We talk about the hypocritical and nearly-unanimous coverage of Erdogan’s abuses and how and why this narrative is converging now to finish the US/NATO task of removing him from office to usher in a more pliable puppet"* James and Sibel lament the lack of diverse coverage regarding the obvious and impending destruction of Turkey- *Obviously they don't re...more »

[image: secular nativity - 400] To celebrate the season, the Texas Capitol has multiple Christmas trees and a Nativity scene on its grounds. But after a complaint by Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday, “a winter solstice” display urging the separation of church and state has been... Continue reading *“Texas Governor Nixes Capitol Freedom from Religion Display”* at *texastribune.org*.

[image: Oil refinery - 400] Oil prices will take decades to recover and will still not reach the peak seen in recent years, according to the latest World Oil Outlook (WOO) from OPEC. In the group’s latest outlook on supply, demand and prices to 2020... Continue reading *“Oil Back at $95 — but Only in 24 Years’ Time: OPEC”* at *cnbc.com*.

*"Could You Pass Harvard's Entrance Exam From 1869?"* By Steve Bartin "Could you pass Harvard’s entrance exam from 1869? Could the special snowflakes who have been told they are great for showing up do it? I think you know the answer. You better know Greek, Latin, Math (no calculator for you!) and much more. We are pretty sure that the hacks who have tenure in the oppression studies departments can’t pass this exam. *Click image for larger size.* Anyway, this 8 page PDF exam proves: the Department of Education hasn’t made education better. Look how high education standards were befo...more »

*Valerie Tarico* - Why might members of the Satanic Temple find it easier than Christians to follow some teachings of Jesus? The post The Seven Satanic Precepts Beat the Ten Commandments as Moral Guide appeared first on Waking Times.

* This is my article in BusinessWorld last December 17, 2015. Solar power, along with wind and small hydro, is among the favored renewable energy sources being pushed worldwide. Rich and poor countries, both in the temperate and the tropics, are pushing for solar, urged especially by the “save the planet” movement led by the United Nations, national governments and the big international nongovernment organizations. 1.5-MegaWatt solar panels atop SM North EDSA SOLAR AT SM NORTH Last Dec. 10, this writer attended a seminar on renewable energy organized by the Philippine Electricity ...more »

*Sayer Ji* - Modern science is only beginning to catch up to the wisdom of the ancients: plants possess sentience and a rudimentary form of intelligence. The post Research Reveals Plants Can Think, Choose & Remember appeared first on Waking Times.

For the corporate unions and their paid stooges, the confetti from the ESSA celebration is probably getting a little soggy by now. For anyone who has looked inside the rewrite of ESEA has done nothing but rain on the Ravitch and FairTest parade ever since. From a letter from ED dated December 22, 2015. If you believed the lie that federal mandates and "test and punish" are over, then think again. But I guess I "quibbling." After all, there is no punishment unless you don't test, which is still the racist tool that will be used to shut down public schools in favor of segregated c...more »

[image: Ted Cruz family - 400] This past weekend, Ted Cruz put out a political ad that was actually good and funny. The ad first aired in Iowa during a broadcast of Saturday Night Live, a fun take on their ad parodies. You can watch it... Continue reading *“10 Stupidest Things About The Post’s Cartoon Portraying Cruz’s Children As Monkeys”* at *thefederalist.com*.

[image: Biden outside pointing] it's true that, in an abstract moral sense, "one child's death is one too many." But hold on. If we follow the even-one-is-worth-it logic, we will find ourselves advocating all kinds of draconian bans and unreasonable requirements. If one preventable... Continue reading *“How An Empty Phrase Can Be Used to Justify Any Government Policy”* at *city-journal.org*.

Episode #114 – SUNDAY WIRE: ‘Pre-Traumatic Stress Disorder’ with host Patrick Henningsen, guest Gilad Atzmon In the second and third hours we’re joined by best selling author and renowned international artist, *Gilad Atzmon*, to discuss life as a “proud self-hating Jew” and the identity politics dilemma shared by two very strange bedfellows: Zionism and the so-called ‘Islamic State’, George Soros and the international *Cultural Marxist* agenda, and also the real roots of Islamophobia in America *I found it an interesting listen* *Don't miss the previous interview either! * Po...more »

Majestika left a link for a great interview; Jeffrey Epstein the billionaire pedophile. I finally got to listen and it's worth the time to do so! Particularly for those Donald Trump lovers who think he is not totally owned. I have a few posts on the Mr Epstein here at the blog- Epstein, Prince Andrew. Bill Clinton, Alan Dershowitz are also tight- I'll relink the older posts later- Gotta find them first Hat tip majestika! 1. majestikaDecember 13, 2015 at 3:40 PM Hey Penny. Funnily enough I was listening to a very interesting podcast on Mr Epstein courtesy of Pearse Redm...more »

*Denier (Morano) admits: Humans cause "Global Warming"... With Windmills* *One of Marc Morano's correspondents wrote as follows:* "The kinetic energy of wind, equivalent to ~10 billion barrels of oil, has in the past blown our ~6,000,000 billion tons of air at a speed of ~15 mph continuously around the Earth, bringing us rain and cooling. But now, humans have built and are building more windmills that are reducing this natural cooling process. Present level of reduction is ~10%. There is no mechanism in nature that replenishes wind energy removed by humans." Tear down all windmill...more »

Wikipedia *Military.com*: *The Top 10 U.S. Military Stories of 2015* The world is changing, and so are the challenges and issues facing the U.S. military. The year 2015 saw major news in just about every corner of the globe involving the military, from the South China Seas to the ongoing threat of ISIS in the Middle East, as well as issues closer to home, including debates over women in combat and congressional arguments about downsizing the military. The following are the Military.com editorial team's picks for the most important military news stories of the year. *Military And I...more »

*Austin Wright and Nahal Toosi, Politico:* *Obama war strategy faces key test in Ramadi* The battle could determine if U.S.-backed forces can seize and hold ground. President Barack Obama's military strategy to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, under fire from nearly every quarter in Washington and on the campaign trail, is finally poised for a key victory. The Pentagon on Tuesday declared it “inevitable” that Iraqi forces backed by U.S. airstrikes and military advisers will soon retake the city of Ramadi, whose fall to the Sunni terrorist group earlier this year ma...more »

A new report by the Pulitzer-winning veteran journalist Seymour Hersh says the Joint Chiefs of Staff has indirectly supported Bashar al-Assad in an effort to help him defeat jihadist groups. Hersh reports the Joint Chiefs sent intelligence via Russia, Germany and Israel on the understanding it would be transmitted to help Assad push back Jabhat al-Nusra and the Islamic State. Hersh also claims the military even undermined a U.S. effort to arm Syrian rebels in a bid to prove it was serious about helping Assad fight their common enemies. Hersh says the Joint Chiefs’ maneuvering was ...more »

R. v. H.A.K., 2015 ONCA 905: [11] First, the law imposes no requirement that the complainant's evidence be corroborated, whether because of the nature of the offence alleged or otherwise. Indeed, it would have been legally wrong for the trial judge to have instructed the jury, expressly or by necessary implication, that corroboration was required or that it was unsafe for the jury to find the appellant guilty of sexual assault in the absence of corroboration: *Criminal Code*, s. 274. The evidence of a single witness may satisfy the trier of fact beyond a reasonable doubt of the...more »

[image: syrian_rebel_fighters_ap] According to a new report by a British think tank backed by former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, the majority of rebel groups in Syria are Islamic extremists motivated by religious impulses. "Our study of 48 rebel factions in Syria... Continue reading *“Report: 60% of Syrian Rebels are ‘Islamic Extremists’”* at *dailywire.com*.

[image: Hillary Clinton] A post on Hillary Clinton's website meant to showcase how the former secretary of State is like "your abuela" -- Spanish for grandmother -- is drawing mockery online. In a post called "7 things Hillary Clinton has in common with... Continue reading *“Clinton’s Hispanic Outreach Sparks Online Backlash”* at *thehill.com*.

*Photo:* ISIS-ZSU-23:2 AA / Marine Corps University report *Washington Free Beacon*: *ISIS Seeking Improvised Anti-Aircraft Missile* *Military says missile effort shows ISIS trying to counter impact of stepped up airstrikes.* Islamic State terrorists in Syria, assisted by western experts, are trying to develop improvised anti-aircraft missiles following stepped up airstrikes against its forces, according to U.S. officials and reports from the region. The effort was disclosed by an anti-ISIS social media account that revealed the anti-aircraft arms development Dec. 15 on Twitter. ...more »

http://www.simplybenglenn.com On the At Issue Panel for December 10th, Andrew Coyne and Chantal Hebert were not concerned about the 49 future appointments Stephen Harper made to government agencies just before the election. Hebert and Coyne said all the appointees appeared competent and that should be the only requirement for the job. Maryantonett Flumian begs to differ. She writes: The real issue here has nothing to do with the incumbents’ qualifications, their partisan affiliation or lack thereof. It has to do with the legitimacy of the...more »

It’s that time of year… Our friends at The Scientist have once again asked us to compile our top 10 retractions of the year. Check out our “greatest hits” of the year. Like Retraction Watch? Consider making a tax-deductible contribution to support our growth. You can also follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook, add us to your RSS […] The post The top 10 retractions of 2015 appeared first on Retraction Watch.

Maria Gardasil: Hanging on to Hope This information is given with permission from Maria’s mother, Rita Lysaker Mysen, Norway Sane Vax, inc. 14 December 2015 Maria was twelve years old when she received the HPV vaccine Gardasil in 2009. She has not been able to go to school for the last four and a half years. When Maria and her mother Rita were recently interviewed in a major Norwegian newspaper it caused a flurry of attention because it is almost unheard of for vaccine injuries to be covered in the media in Norway. During the interview Maria and Rita shared the story of Maria’s s...more »

[image: Iraqi forces] Iraqi forces are attempting to move further into the centre of Ramadi, on the second day of an assault to drive Islamic State militants from the city. Security officials say troops and Sunni tribal fighters have taken control of several... Continue reading *“Backed by U.S. Air Support, Iraqi Forces Plunge Into ISIS-Held Ramadi”* at *bbc.com*.

[image: SIMI VALLEY, CA - MARCH 08: Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush speaks at the Reagan Library after autographing his new book "Immigration Wars: Forging an American Solution" on March 8, 2013 in Simi Valley, California. Bush discussed the leadership and policy changes he believes are required to turn the country around. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)] My advice is for the GOP to combine options 2 and 3, but my "reform" is very different from the swing to the left noted above. Frum has long advocated accepting Obamacare and other progressive programs, much like Eisenhow...more »

[image: Greece same-sex civil union] ATHENS, Greece -- Greece's parliament has overwhelmingly approved legislation legalizing civil partnerships for gay couples, two years after the country was condemned by a European human rights court for discrimination. In a result announced early Wednesday, lawmakers voted 193-56 in... Continue reading *“Greek Parliament Legalizes Same-Sex Civil Partnerships”* at *washingtonpost.com*.

This Time article http://time.com/4159915/2-palestinians-killed-after-stabbing-attack/ really is headlined '2 Palestinians Killed After Stabbing Attack'. No mention of the Israeli Jews attacked by these two Palestinians. Are Jewish lives worth so little?

Herr Trumpf doesn't like seeing himself as a loser, but he will soon have no choice. Even Republican voters are waking up to his obvious shortcomings and are starting to coalesce around an even worse candidate, Ted Cruz. A Quinnipiac poll of national Republicans and 3 state polls of GOP voters-- Florida, South Carolina and New Hampshire-- all seem to predict what has already happened in Iowa-- the end of Dr. Ben's campaign (now little more than a campaign donation mop-up operation) and a gradual end to Trumpf dominance as Cruz becomes the consensus candidate of the angry, inchoate ...more »

By Paul Homewood http://blog.metoffice.gov.uk/2015/12/16/mild-start-to-december/ It has certainly been an unseasonably warm December so far, and one that is forecast to continue. However, it is certainly not unprecedented. As the Met Office indicate, 1979, 2000 and 2006 were similar. But the warmest December on record was actually back in 1934. (Now why would […]

SSBN-726 Ohio-Class FBM Submarines. FAS.org *New York Times*:* 1950s U.S. Nuclear Target List Offers Chilling Insight* WASHINGTON — Target category No. 275 from the nuclear target list for 1959 may be the most chilling. It is called simply “Population.” For the first time, the National Archives and Records Administration has released a detailed list of the United States’ potential targets for atomic bombers in the event of war with the Soviet Union, showing the number and the variety of targets on its territory, as well as in Eastern Europe and China. It lists many targets for “sys...more »

[image: consumer spending] WASHINGTON (AP) -- Consumers increased their spending by a modest 0.3 percent in November, in line with expectations. The Commerce Department says the increase followed a nearly flat reading in October. The data on consumer spending, which accounts for two-thirds of...more »

[image: Kim Davis - 900] FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) -- Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, who spent five days in jail for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, said she prayed for those who disagreed with her and feels the pace of social change has “awakened”...more »

*New York Times*: *French Police Make 2,700 Raids in Month, Raising Tension With Muslims* The French authorities have conducted more than 2,700 police raids under a nationwide state of emergency instituted after last month’s deadly terrorist attacks in Paris. Using extraordinary powers granted by France’s National Assembly, officers have conducted searches without warrants of dozens of homes, arrested hundreds of people and even shut down mosques and Muslim prayer rooms for fear they were preaching radicalization. The use of such tactics has increased tensions between the governm...more »

[image: Gov. Alejandro Padilla] Senate Democrats introduced legislation Monday that would give Puerto Rico a temporary stay on litigation while Congress figures out a plan to address the island's debt crisis. The island owes over $70 billion in public debt with a $950 million payment...more »

[image: Jesus Carrying the Cross - 900] The Blaze has a new article by Robert J. Hutchinson titled, “Six Shocking New Discoveries About Jesus of Nazareth.” The six discoveries came through archaeology and through study of the New Testament texts, and they’re really quite important. They add a lot to...more »

British airstrikes could recommence over Libya as a UK-sponsored UN resolution is looking likely to win approval on Wednesday. The resolution, primarily intended to endorse the new regime in Libya, is also a first step towards potential military action, opening the way for the Libyan government to invite foreign countries to help tackle the spread of Isis. RT reports: If passed, the resolution would permit more active military support to Libyan authorities, which are now operating with greater unity after the country’s two opposing governments reached a deal. While the resolution’s ...more »

[image: Christmas Eclipse - 400] When a full solar eclipse happens, strange things occur on earth. The temperature can drop as much as 20 degrees! Chickens begin to roost, animals bed down, and in the shadow of the moon the world is bathed in total... Continue reading *“The Eclipse of Christmas”* at *crossexamined.org*.

[image: Las Vegas] Eric Pitkanen had been in Las Vegas for less than nine hours, and he already missed his 15-month-old son back home in Oregon. As the athletic trainer and his team of college wrestlers walked past the famous hotels lining the... Continue reading *“Witness Recounts Vegas Strip Rampage: ‘It Was Gas the Whole Way’”* at *latimes.com*.

[image: French Prime Minister Manuel Valls speaks during a press conference to present reform proposals, agreed by the government today, that could see the state of emergency called after last month's Paris attacks enshrined in the constitution, at the Elysee presidential palace on December 23, 2015 in Paris.] PARIS (AP) -- France’s government is promising a constitutional change to revoke the citizenship of dual-national terrorism convicts as part of measures upholding the state of emergency imposed after the Nov. 13 attacks. Prime Minister Manuel Valls on Wednesday also...more »

*Near Jiji.* DPP Candidate Tsai Ing-wen promises a No Provocations, No Surprises policy with China, but what will Beijing do? The annexation via economic integration proceeds apace, with the Ministry of Economic Affairs promising to fast track carefully scrutinize the deal under which a Chinese firm buys into key Taiwan semiconductor industry firms in the latest example of that... But then, we may be lucky that China already treats Taiwan as a satrapy of Beijing, so it doesn't mess with the territory. Today news came out that China has told Korea it wants the marine border rolled ...more »

People from Las Vegas to Ventura witnessed a large glowing meteor like object flying across the sky on Tuesday night. @ABC10 RT @News3LV: Apparent large meteor flies across Las Vegas sky https://t.co/HOKlr6ihgh pic.twitter.com/sFKM2mw5tT — Ryan (@Detron3000) December 23, 2015 Video’s posted across social media appear to show multiple parts of the object falling apart. @FOX5Vegas Captured an amazing meteor in Las Vegas around 6pm tonight! Saw it breaking up as it fell to earth! pic.twitter.com/xK2ObyL5o9 — BA®®Y™ (@SteeleSoldier) December 23, 2015 Not everyone was convinced that the ...more »

[image: India Christians] Systematic violence against Christians continues in India to this day, though not often at the appalling scale of the cyclone of cruelty in Kandhamal. An Indian website dedicated to anti-Christian persecution, called Speak Out Against Hate, states that in 2015, there's... Continue reading *“Indian and Asian Christians Targeted for Their Faith”* at *cruxnow.com*.

[image: Pope Francis United Nations General Assembly_900] BERLIN (AP) -- Pope Francis has been named as the winner of the International Charlemagne Prize, awarded annually by the German city of Aachen for contributions to European unity. The prize committee said Wednesday that the pontiff has sent “a...more »

[image: Mariana Rajoy] MADRID (AP) -- Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy met Wednesday with the leader of the main opposition party to launch complicated talks on forming a coalition or minority government after his party won the most votes in national elections but...more »

*Do mathematics matter?* Every so often, articles like this one appear, which seem to show that the American education system is, to use the term in the article, mediocre. What the article shows is that regardless of socioeconomic status, American students score below most developed nations in mathematical ability. The problem with statistics like these is that most people do not need a great deal of mathematical ability to be productive citizens, or to be educated citizens. Mathematical ability is important for scientists and engineers, but people can be productive in sales, marke...more »

David Cameron is facing calls to challenge the US over their refusal to allow a British Muslim family to board a flight from Gatwick to Los Angeles, to visit Disneyland. The family of 11 were denied access to their plane by US Department of Homeland Security officials… without explanation. A UK politician is now calling on the British government to investigate. The Guardian reports: Stella Creasy, the Labour MP for Walthamstow, has written to the prime minister after a family party of 11, about to embark on a dream holiday for which they had saved for months, were approached by offi...more »

Are US Academics Who Cite "WikiLeaks" Blackballed? Hersh's Latest Bombshell: U.S. Military Undermined Obama on Syria with Tacit Help to Assad "It is very difficult for the prosperous to be humble.” — Emma (1815) "I do not want people to be very agreeable, as it saves me the trouble of liking them a great deal.” — Personal correspondence of Jane Austen "Vanity working on a weak head,

From: *Species turnover in tropical montane forest avifauna links to climatic correlates* Chi-Feng Tsaia, Ya-Fu Leea, Yun-Hsiu Chenb, Wei-Ming Chena, Yen-Min Kuoa, Global Ecology and Conservation, Volume 3, January 2015, Pages 541–552 We evidenced a 37.9% of richness attrition and a discrepancy of compositions by 30.2% from historical records dated roughly a quarter century ago, and an increased homogeneity in the mid-elevation LEF forest avifauna. These translated to a species turnover rate of 2.2% per year. In addition, greater change appeared to occur to resident species of lower...more »

An injured Ukrainian woman from the east of the country pleads with the world for help after witnessing her family get torn apart by shelling from government controlled western Ukraine during last summer. She is a Ukrainian living in her own country and does not understand why President Poroshenko is killing his own people, just because they want autonomy from the Neo-Con led, Neo-Nazi influenced western Ukraine. Russia Insider reports: If This Video Doesn’t End the War in Ukraine, Nothing Will The war in East Ukraine is routinely presented in western mainstream media as a humanitar...more »

'Asylum seekers and refugees applying to be minicab drivers are exempt from criminal records checks, potentially allowing murderers and rapists to get behind the wheel. Rules laid down by Transport for London (TfL) mean refugees and those applying for asylum do not have to reveal whether they have a criminal history when trying to become a cab driver. The legal loophole in an official application document on 'private hire driver licensing' says people coming to Britain will not be required to have their criminal convictions checked. Asylum seekers and refugees applying to be mini...more »

* This is my article in Business 360 magazine in Kathmandu, Nepal, December 2015 issue. ---------- *Energy Independence in Asia* Energy independence is a virtue that a country must pursue. And this independence can mean two things. One, independence from only one major energy source because if that resource would experience a major price hike or supply disruption, the economy can be endangered. And two, independence from only one major country supplier because if there is any political or economic tension and instability in that country, energy supply to the home country can also ...more »

In my various online exchanges and debates, I always try to be careful to criticize an idea, a comment, a philosophy -- not the commentator, not the person espousing the idea or philosophy. Meaning I try to shoot the message, but not the messenger. There are two reasons for this. One is that it is not good to engage in ad hominems, personal attacks, and other low-life engagement. And second, a person can change his/her position and advocacy after sometime while an idea or philosophy can last for decades or centuries. I myself was guilty of doing some personal attacks in my online de...more »

*The Independent:* *Brunei cancels Christmas: Sultan warns those celebrating could face up to five years in jail* The punishment for celebrating Christmas is a fine of $20,000, up to five years in prison or both Anyone found illegally celebrating Christmas in Brunei could face up to five years in prison, according to a reported declaration by the Sultan of the tiny oil-rich state. Brunei introduced its ban on Christmas last year over fears that celebrating it "excessively and openly" could lead its Muslim population astray. *WNU Editor*: The "real war against Christmas" continues.

*Today:* *Guns topping Christmas lists thanks to terrorism concerns, fear over restrictions* The convergence of fears over terrorism, a perceived threat of gun laws being changed and the Christmas holiday have sent gun sales soaring in what is already the busiest month of the year for firearm purchases. Guns are at the top of many Christmas lists, especially if November is any indication. Last month, the FBI ran more than 2.2 million firearm background checks on potential buyers, a 24 percent increase from November 2014. On Black Friday, a record 185,345 background checks were pr...more »

We have seen this story before and the document may be a fabrication meant to thwart hackers. However the only thing between us and space is gravity control. That work clearly started back in the fifties as a black project with apparent help from an alien adviser. We now have several witnesses to all that. We have already confirmed that gravity can be modified.. However the technology of space craft was surely constrained by the level of mankind's computer technology. That was confirmed through the presentation of so called crop circle images demanding and showing comput...more »

I am tackling today a rather difficult topic. With the exception of Buddhism and that claim is suspect, all spiritual practice has been inspired by some form or other of what is referred to as divine revelation. The first central claim made is that the divine revelation is Truth and must be accepted without debate. That has been modified of course but it remains the central issue in our confrontation with Islam. In fact, it turns out that our subconscious feeds us divine revelation on a regular basis whenever we are stuck. It is typically best consumed in a timely manner an...more »

*[image: Roc Morin]* .This is a remarkable insightful item. This work is the true future of psychological therapy. Bits and pieces are coming together and the real issue is that far too much research has been recreational without a plan or direction or even a goal. The whole battery of psychoactive drugs need to be put into the clinical setting and we need to learn how to exploit them. And some of them are dangerous but that is why we want a controlled setting. We also now need a goals oriented psychotherapy. These witness met their objectives and it was good. That is what ...more »

This seems a touch too complicated but then they are addressing the right problem and having a greenhouse building system that relies on humidity is useful anyway. As i have posted many times, it is a simple matter of collecting humidity near the seashore and using it to support a tree. TYhe tree put the moisture back into the atmosphere. This allows us to build a forest all the way back into the desert bringing the trees with us. It needs to be done, but needs to be done as a national initiative wherever it is started. The growers will follow happily behind. *Desert greenh...more »

*Daily Mail:* *Playing chicken with a missile: The astonishing moment Syrian driver dodges incoming rebel missile that was locked on his pick-up truck by waiting until the last second before hitting the accelerator* * Driver moves out of the way in death-defying manoeuvre * TOW missile locked on to white-pick up truck in what appears to be Syria * If vehicle moved too soon the missile would have changed direction * Drive appears to be Hezbollah fighter due to yellow flag nearby This is the moment a driver dodged an incoming missile heading straight for his pick-up truck by waiting u...more »

[image: President Barack Obama speaks to members of the media after signing H.R. 1314, the "Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015," Monday, Nov. 2, 2015, in the Oval Office in the White House in Washington, before traveling Andrews Air Force Base, Md., on his way to Newark, N.J. Obama will spend the day highlighting the re-entry process of formerly incarcerated individuals back into society.] President Obama’s reckless neglect of America’s national security is a rapidly growing malignancy on this nation, and there are no signs it will get better. Some might attribute his arrogantly inaccurat...more »

*Zero Hedge*: *"Canadians Should Be Concerned" As Energy Sector Job Losses Spike To 100,000 This Year* It's grim up north... and getting grimmer. Amid soaring suicide rates, Canada's once-booming oil patch is rapidly accelerating its downward trajectory. "Canadians should be concerned in times like these," warned Tim McMillan, president and chief executive of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, noting that the oil and gas sector will see 100,000 job losses by the end of this year. Even if oil prices rise early and fast next year, Financial Post reports, it may take a ...more »

[image: CPR training] WASHINGTON (AP) -- Sudden cardiac arrest may not always be so sudden: New research suggests a lot of people may ignore potentially life-saving warning signs hours, days, even a few weeks before they collapse. Cardiac arrest claims about 350,000 U.S....more »

*December 23, 2015* (Tony Cartalucci - LD) - As joint Russian-Syrian military operations against NATO-backed terrorists in Syria approach their logical conclusion - the cutting off of NATO supply lines along Syria's borders and the encirclement and destruction of terrorist forces within the nation's interior - the West has gone through several phases in an attempt to salvage what is left of their four, now nearly five year immensely destructive proxy war against the Syrian people. Ironically, after attempting to lay waste to an entire nation by arming, funding, training, and suppor...more »

[image: Food pyramid - 900] Have you heard? The GOP is declaring war on science again. In February, a government-appointed nutrition advisory panel said Americans should eat less sugar and red meat. It also suggested that environmental considerations should factor into a healthy diet, which...more »

[image: Groups of Equally Diverse Colored Pencils - 900] The political left has been trying to run other people’s lives for centuries. So we should not be surprised to see the Obama administration now trying to force neighborhoods across America to have the mix of people the government wants...more »

Saudi Arabia is the largest importer of British weaponry. Reuters *The Independent*: *UK Government attempting to keep details of secret security pact with Saudi Arabia hidden from public* Exclusive: Theresa May agreed to ‘memorandum of understanding’ with Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef last year. The British Government signed a secret security pact with Saudi Arabia and is now attempting to prevent details of the deal from being made public. The Home Secretary Theresa May agreed to the so-called ‘memorandum of understanding’ with her Saudi counter-part Crown Prince Muhammad bin ...more »

The Cook County State’s Attorney election is coming up this March 15th, and it has caught my eye in light of recent revelations in Chicago around the murder of Laquan McDonald. Kim Foxx is the candidate we're following. It's not often that a local State’s Attorney’s election makes the national news, but Cook County is the second largest county in the United States. And, this vote couldn’t be happening at a more critical time in the series of conversations that are happening all around the United States on how to fix the broken criminal justice system. Kim Foxx’s opponent, embattl...more »

B-1B B-2 and B-52. Wikicommons *Gregory Noddin Poulin, The Hill*: *The Troubling State of the Air Force's Long-Range Bomber Fleet* The latest installment of the Republican presidential debate last week saw an unlikely object become the scorn of GOP attacks: the B-52 strategic bomber. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush began the assault, lamenting the U.S. military has “a lack of readiness that is quite scary. We have planes that…Harry Truman inaugurated, the B-52.” Followed soon thereafter by retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who said, “our Military needs to be upgraded…Our B-52 bombers...more »

*VOA*: *Survey: Arabs Overwhelmingly Oppose Islamic State* A new survey of more than 18,000 Arabs in 12 countries shows they overwhelmingly have negative views of Islamic State insurgents terrorizing many of their homelands. The Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies in Doha, Qatar, said it found that 80 percent of the people surveyed in face-to-face interviews throughout the Mideast expressed negative views about the Islamic State group that has proclaimed a caliphate through large swaths of Iraq and Syria. Another 9 percent said they viewed the group negatively "to some ex...more »

[image: Nicholas Kay, Hassan Mohamud, Somalia, United Nations, U.N.] ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) -- Somalia is no longer a failed state but a recovering fragile country, the top U.N. official for war-torn Somalia has said. In the last three years the country has stabilized but there is still a...more »

[image: Human Rights Watch London] BEIRUT (AP) -- A human rights watchdog on Wednesday accused Russia of using cluster munitions and unguided bombs on civilian areas in Syria in attacks that it says have killed hundreds of people in the past few months. The report...more »

CNN *The Hill:* *Rise of ISIS named top story of 2015* The explosive growth of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and international efforts to root out the extremist group was the top news story in 2015, according to a poll of American journalists from The Associated Press. Thirty-seven of the 100 editors and news directors taking part in the AP’s annual survey put the fight against ISIS — which has stretched from its self-proclaimed caliphate in the Middle East to Europe and across the Internet — at the top of the list. Second was the Supreme Court’s historic June rulin...more »

[image: Woman w Israeli flag] Writing for the Washington Post on December 14th, Telhami observed that "Regarding the importance of a candidate's position on Israel when voting, 64 percent of Evangelical Republicans say this matters 'a lot' compared with just 33 percent of non-Evangelical Republicans... Continue reading *“New Poll Reveals Evangelical Christians Fuel Republican Support For Israel”* at *forward.com*.

[image: Russell Wilson] AT 9 A.M. ON Sunday, Oct. 18, after a choir of serene, smiling Christians sings a few songs about Jesus’ love for all people, a man takes the stage. He’s a dead ringer for the actor Patrick Fugit, with black... Continue reading *“The Higher Power of Russell Wilson”* at *espn.go.com*.

[image: NOAA, buoy, sensors, Pacific ocean, National Weather Service] A non-profit watchdog group's lawsuit against the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration may have spurred the agency to release documents to a congressional committee that reveal a “new climate data scandal.” Judicial Watch filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit...more »

[image: Underground Music Showcase 2012 - The Slants at Moe's BBQ in Denver] WASHINGTON (AP) -- A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that the government can’t refuse to register trademarks that might be considered disparaging or offensive, a decision that could bolster the Washington Redskins in their legal fight over the team name....more »

A Chinese Coast Guard ship armed with what the Japanese Coast Guard described as a cannon has been sighted in waters near disputed islands in the East China Sea. PHOTO: AFP *VOA*:* Japan: Armed Chinese Vessel Spotted Near Disputed Islands* Japan says it has spotted an armed Chinese coast guard ship near a set of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea that are the center of a long-running territorial dispute between the two Asian economic giants. The Japanese Coast Guard released a photo Tuesday that showed the vessel sailing near the islands, which are referred to in Japan as Se...more »

[image: Snowy walk, rain drops on the window, mid-winter, Greenwood Ave, Seattle, Washington, USA] Seattle: Here is a little example of the way the triangle of environmental groups, government agencies and media combine to exaggerate problems, and then fail to acknowledge improvement when a "crisis" goes away. The Pacific Northwest drought last summer is over,...more »

In an interview for HuffPo with Michelangelo Signorile, Ronald Reagan's daughter, Patti Davis, said of the GOP's Deep Bench, "My father would be so appalled at what’s going on. He would be so appalled at these candidates. I don’t think he would be a Republican. And if another Ronald Reagan came along right now, I don’t think the Republican Party would accept him." I wonder if supporters of Herr Trumpf have been noticing that one of the ways their Republican Members of Congress are sabotaging Herr is by endorsing other candidates-- including some with no chance of the nomination at...more »

*Click on Image to Enlarge* *Al Jazeera:* *Armenia accuses Azerbaijan of all-out 'war'* Defence ministry says ceasefire doesn't exist as hostilities over disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region escalate. Armenia says a ceasefire with neighbouring Azerbaijan over the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh no longer exists, describing frequent skirmishes at the front line as "war". Artsrun Hovhannisyan, a spokesman of Armenia's defence ministry, said on Tuesday that Azerbaijan was using "all existing armaments: tanks, howitzers, and anti-aircraft artillery" against Armenian soldiers in the ...more »

[image: Female Soldier at the Shooting Range. (December 5, 2006) - The Field Training Week in Southern Israel, part of the IDF Infantry Instructors course, includes individual and group drills, navigation practice, sleeping in the field and camouflage training. At the end of the course the female soldiers will be placed in different positions, instructing IDF Ground Forces.] Don't confuse most military women with the tiny feminist cabal comprised of a few officers and a lot of political groups who've been pushing for complete integration of the combat arms. There is a vindictive refr...more »

[image: CS Lewis2 - 400] More or less by accident, the worlds of broadcasting and publishing have created one of the literary marvels of Christianity. It's a book called Mere Christianity, by C. S. Lewis, the scholar who became famous by writing the seven fantasy... Continue reading *“How C.S. Lewis Made Christianity Seem Like Common Sense”* at *news.nationalpost.com*.

http://www.cbc.ca/ The Postmedia chain was in trouble when Conrad Black tried to convince Canadians -- and himself -- that he was the reincarnation of Lord Beaverbrook. Things have gotten worse since Paul Godfrey took over the chain. Andrew Mitrovica writes: Postmedia’s recent litany of sins is a long one, and familiar to anyone who worries about the state of journalism in this country. Its Toronto-based head office managed to disgrace itself thoroughly during the recent election by forcing 16 of its major daily papers to run edit...more »

[image: Apple - 400] Apple's massive new headquarters complex, nicknamed the “spaceship,” is currently under construction in Cupertino, California. CEO Tim Cook and CBS News’ Charlie Rose took in a panoramic view in this image from 60 Minutes. When it’s complete, the campus will... Continue reading *“Inside Apple’s New ‘Spaceship’ Headquarters”* at *cbsnews.com*.

[image: Salvation Army - 400] Every December, our family has chosen names off charity trees and bought presents for needy kids and families. But this act of giving felt hollow. There's nothing wrong with wanting to give Christmas gifts to kids, but I remember the... Continue reading *“Have You Ever Asked Yourself This Provocative Question About Charity?”* at *theblaze.com*.

[image: Faith - 400] Tom Gjelten, journalist for National Public Radio produced a story titled, “Unbelief As A Belief System: Core Tenet For Christians’ Fight For Religious Rights.” Quoting me on the religious nature of secularism, Gjelten wrote: Christian conservatives who are battling for... Continue reading *“Secularism’s War Against Christianity Exposed in NPR Report”* at *charismanews.com*.

Except for Alec Bruce's column on Dec. 21, there is nothing worth reading in the Moncton Times and Transcipt for the last two days. There is little news, and most of it is trivia. I also checked its sister paper, the Telegraph-Journal. It was worse. Minimally, they could have done some ten minutes of reading up on glyphosate to see whether that might have some bearing on the persecution of Dr. Cleary. But they didn't and they won't. They understand their jobs; and hey understand us. We are not people. We are disposable labour. And we pay the taxes that the 'better sort' don't pay. ...more »

United States President Barack Obama chairs a United Nations Security Council meeting at U.N. Headquarters in New York, N.Y., Sept. 24, 2009. Wikipedia *Ian Bremmer, Time:* *The Absence of Global Leadership Will Shape a Tumultuous 2016* *What to expect in the year ahead* During the annual Asia-Pacific leaders’ summit in Manila in November, President Obama sought out two people for a pressing conversation. Not Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose forces were busy changing facts on the ground in Syria, nor Chinese President Xi Jinping, whose global economic strategy is paying of...more »

*Written by Facebook Commenters* It absolutely amazes me what passes as journalism, in particular political/legislative journalism.. I`m not talking about some recent graduate from journalism school but no other than Michael Smyth.. How on earth can the Province Newspaper and Michael Smyth keep a straight face after putting their names to Smyth`s latest.. You see, this is what Robin Mathews writes about, what I and many other internet scribers write about...A Failed media, but it`s more than that, one can only come to the conclusion, that these MIchael Smyth type scribers are...more »

A suicide attacker rammed a motorcycle laden with explosives into a joint NATO-Afghan patrol near Bagram air base in Afghanistan on Monday. A rocket barrage hit Kabul afterwards. It is the deadliest attack on foreign troops since August. Aljazeera reports: The soldiers were targeted as they moved through a village near Bagram Airfield, the largest US military facility in Afghanistan, NATO and Afghan officials said. Brigadier General Wilson Shoffner, head of public affairs for the NATO force, said in a statement that six service members were killed and three others wounded in the sui...more »

*Al Jazeera*: *Iraq's army storms centre of ISIL-held Ramadi* *Two-front attack met with sniper fire and suicide bombers as troops seek to retake key city from fighters.* Iraq's military fought its way into the centre of a key ISIL-held city on Tuesday in a major operation to oust the armed group that seized control of Ramadi in May. The attack on the capital of Anbar province began on Tuesday morning, a spokesman for the army's counter-terrorism unit told AFP news agency. "We went into the centre of Ramadi from several fronts and we began purging residential areas. The city will...more »

*“Q: [Is it] appropriate for an atheist to celebrate Christmas?* *A: “The secular meaning of the Christmas holiday is wider than the tenets of anyparticular religion: it is good will toward men...* * The charming aspect of Christmas is the fact that it expresses good will in a **cheerful, happy, benevolent, non-sacrificial way. One says: ‘Merry Christmas’—**not ‘Weep and Repent.’ And the good will is expressed in a material, earthly **form—by giving presents to one’s friends, or by sending them cards in token **of remembrance…** “The best aspect of Christmas is the aspect usua...more »

[image: Bevin - 400] FRANKFORT, Ky. -- In one of his first major acts in office, Gov. Matt Bevin issued a series of executive orders Tuesday to remove the names of county clerks from marriage licenses in Kentucky and halt efforts by former Gov. Steve Beshear to restore voting rights to certain... Continue reading *“Kentucky Gov. Bevin Orders the Removal of County Clerks’ Names from Marriage Licenses”* at *courier-journal.com*.

*UPDATE: December 23, 2015* - I've checked CBC and Global TV and neither main$tream media has covered this story of the Canadian fighter jet involved in the killing of Iraqi soldiers. Maybe this is one of those "selective audience" newstories....for foreign consumption only. I note the Lying BBC (and CBC are) covering the "Amnesty International" Story about Russian bombers killing innocent Syrians. This is why the ghouls are rubbing their hands with glee over Russian involvement in the chaos they've brought to the ME. *Blood on the hands* of their *"enemy du jour"* is a major strat...more »

General George S. Patton died on 21 December 1945. He commanded the Third Army after the Normandy landings of 1944 and made an aggressive armoured push across France and into Germany. He was instrumental in ending the second world war and liberating occupied Europe and Germany from the Nazis. “The Old Man” died on December 21, 1945, as a result of injuries from a car accident. The Guardian reports: General Patton dies A habit of wearing two revolvers helps to make a general “news,” but it does not necessarily make him a great commander. The American General George S. Patton was alway...more »

*Jonathan Marcus, BBC:* *Sangin: Kabul and Nato's failures laid bare* The grim strategic geography of Afghanistan, the province of Helmand and towns like Sangin and Lashkar Gah, is back in the headlines. They are places etched into the collective memory of the British military, which suffered over 100 combat fatalities in and around Sangin, almost a quarter of all those killed during Britain's Afghan intervention. Now the Taliban has swept across Helmand, taking control of all but two of its districts, and pushing Afghan forces in Sangin to the brink. *Military And Intelligence Ne...more »

[image: Paul Ryan] House Speaker Paul Ryan says lifting the decades-old ban on oil exports will be “like having 100 Keystone pipelines” as he beats back criticisms that Republicans lost out by trading oil exports for extended green energy subsidies. "Having the oil export...more »

[image: Defund Planned Parenthood Success - 400] A federal judge ruled Tuesday that Utah Gov. Gary Herbert has the authority to cut off funding to Planned Parenthood, dealing a major legal blow to the organization as it tries to preserve its funding in multiple states this year.... Continue reading *“Judge Sides with Utah Gov. Against Planned Parenthood in Funding Battle”* at *thehill.com*.

Thousands of people including Pagans, Druids and Witches gathered at Stonehenge to witness the sunrise on the shortest day of the year in the northern hemisphere. Crowds started to arrive at the Wiltshire landmark before dawn with many others travelling on to the Avebury stone circle, which is also in the county. #Stonehenge #WinterSolstice about 20mins to sunrise pic.twitter.com/dICSw6zazC — Katy Austin (@KatyAustinNews) December 22, 2015 The winter solstice marks the point when the North Pole is tilted 23.5 degrees away from the sun. The December solstice happens at the same insta...more »

*-by Noah* The alternate universe of the mind that Republicans have chosen to live in is a world of staggering ugliness and hypocrisy. The real world, the one that normal people live in just isn’t the world republicans choose. So, off they go into some crazy twilight world where racism, misogyny and all manner of negativity are justified, conspiracies abound, and a veritable cornucopia of never ending hate is always available. Often the words of republicans themselves give normal people a view into the darkness of this other place. *1. Chipper Jones--* One day soon, former Atlan...more »

A ginger haired man who felt marginalized by society for his hair color and was planning to assassinate Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, has been detained indefinitely under the Mental Health Act. Mark Colborne, a “ginger extremist” fantasied about changing the British Monarchy in favor of ginger haired folk by assassinating the Prince of Wales so that Charles’s youngest son, Prince Harry could become king instead of Prince William. Prince Harry is a ginger haired monarch in waiting, unlike his brother Prince William, who is not deemed a pure ‘ginger’ because of his receding hair...more »

A cell phone found by Iraqi volunteer forces belonging to one of the ringleaders of ISIS, has revealed proof that the Turkish spy agency support the terrorist group. “The mobile phone was found with one of the killed ISIL leaders in the Northern parts of Salahuddin province two days ago,” Commander Jabbar al-Ma’mouri announced. The ISIS cell phone contained history files containing messages from the Turkish intelligence agency which prove that Ankara support ISIS by providing them with security at points of entry from Turkey to Iraq. Farsnews.com reports: “The mobile phone also con...more »

Schools across Taiwan have been banned from serving GMO food to students, according to a new anti-GMO bill passed on Monday. The Ministry of Education say that the new regulations will take effect next semester and aims to eradicate genetically modified ingredients and any processed foods that contain genetically modified organisms (GMOs) from all school menus. Chinapost.com.tw reports: The ban would affect the selection of ingredients often used in school lunches in the past, including soybeans, corn, salmon, tofu, and soymilk. The new law would apply to cafeterias and food stands ...more »

I have been warning most of my American readers for the last few months at least to be absolutely weary of Donald Trump and his aspirations to become the next US President.... We have all seen the massive hype when the last "hero" and "savior" for America, Ron Paul, suddenly pulled the plug on his campaign back in 2012 and he allowed the skewered American "polling" system to destroy his entire campaign... Now these same fools are banking their hopes on Donald Trump as a means of saving America..... Just today, I came across a most interesting article that I want to share with everyo...more »

"Big, bright, and beautiful, spiral galaxy M83 lies a mere twelve million light-years away, near the southeastern tip of the very long constellation Hydra. Prominent spiral arms traced by dark dust lanes and blue star clusters lend this galaxy its popular name, The Southern Pinwheel. But reddish star forming regions that dot the sweeping arms highlighted in this sparkling color composite also suggest another nickname, The Thousand-Ruby Galaxy. *Click image for larger size.* About 40,000 light-years across, M83 is a member of a group of galaxies that includes active galaxy Centaurus ...more »

*“Under The Suns Of Heaven”* by Chet Raymo "A decade or so before he died, in 2006 at age 71, the Irish writer John McGahern wrote of his Catholic childhood: "I have nothing but gratitude for the spiritual remnants of that upbringing, the sense of our origins beyond the bounds of sense, an awareness of mystery and wonderment, grace and sacrament, and the absolute equality of all women and men underneath the sun of heaven. That is all that now remains. Belief as such has long gone." I trust his remark sounds familiar. You have often heard something similar here. McGahern is a year o...more »

Right now in Okinawa, Japan, hundreds of people are putting their bodies in front of bulldozers. Why? Because a U.S. military base wants to expand, dumping landfill on the home of 5,300 species, including the rare Japanese dugong.We stand with the people of Okinawa. SHARE if you do too! Posted by Greenpeace International on Wednesday, November 4, 2015

Sixth in the series, Warriors for Peace by Regis Tremblay. Veterans Speak. Fr. Peter Hinde, O. Carm., Catholic priest and former WWII fighter pilot in Japan. Involved in U.S. Civil Rights protests, missionary in Peru, and now working in Juarez, Mexico. An amazing story about an amazing life.

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About Me

I've been 'around' for a few years now, pursuing the shifting goal of a sharable home-made surfers resource site focused on ease of use and variety of mostly adult ( whoa : I didn't say prurient ) content.